SCOTT DETROW, HOST:
Ukrainians are heading into their fifth winter at war, and as the weather has gotten colder, Russia has stepped up its bombing campaign of Ukraine's capital - of Ukraine's critical infrastructure. Another round of peace talks with Russia and the U.S. is underway in Abu Dhabi, but it doesn't give Ukrainians much hope because they feel like the Trump administration has sided with the Kremlin and that Europe is being sidelined. In such gloomy times, Ukrainians do see one bright spot - the U.S. midterm elections. NPR's Eleanor Beardsley reports from Kyiv.
(SOUNDBITE OF GENERATOR RUNNING)
ELEANOR BEARDSLEY, BYLINE: Generators hum across Ukraine's capital, Kyiv, where electricity is sporadic these days. A generator-powered coffee kiosk is a bright spot on a dark street. Serhii Kyashko is enjoying a hot, milky coffee and a pastry. This 45-year-old actor says his theater on Kyiv's Left Bank is still up and running, even though fewer come with all the electricity and transport cuts due to the Russian strikes.
SERHII KYASHKO: (Speaking Ukrainian).
BEARDSLEY: "Like everyone in Kyiv, I have a plan B," he says. "But if we have gas, we can more or less make it. No matter what, we're going to hold on as long as needed. If Ukraine stops fighting, there will be no Ukraine." He says he doesn't put much stock in the peace talks and doesn't trust Putin or Trump, but he's quite happy about the U.S. midterms.
KYASHKO: (Speaking Ukrainian).
BEARDSLEY: "Long live America. It seems the American people realized they have been fooled by Donald Trump," he says.
(SOUNDBITE OF SIRENS WAILING)
BEARDSLEY: Sirens wail constantly across the city as Russia has stepped up missile- and jet-powered drone strikes, Ukrainian Parliament member Inna Sovsun says she doesn't believe anything will change in this round of peace talks because zero pressure has been put on Putin. She's just had a baby, and I reach her on the phone in Kyiv.
INNA SOVSUN: Having a baby in a country at war is another level of difficulty, particularly now in Kyiv, with a lack of electricity. We - for today, according to the schedule, I will have five hours of electricity at my place. When I don't have electricity, I don't have water supply, and I don't have the heating at home.
BEARDSLEY: She lives on the 14th floor, so has to carefully plan her outings for when the elevator is working, but she says the new life in her family brings hope and is a sign that Putin will not deprive Ukrainians of their dreams for the future.
OLEKSANDR MEREZHKO: It sort of raised the level of optimism in Ukraine with regard to our relations with the United States.
BEARDSLEY: That's parliamentarian Oleksandr Merezhko, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee. He says Ukrainians know the midterm elections were not about them, but he still feels they will bring something positive.
MEREZHKO: I hope that Congress will play the role of deterrent against any attempts to make other deals with Putin with Russia like diesel deal.
BEARDSLEY: And maybe there'll be a congressional investigation to find out who slowed down Starlink, he says, referring to Elon Musk's satellite system that allows Ukraine's military to operate its drones.
UNIDENTIFIED PEOPLE: (Singing in non-English language).
BEARDSLEY: Huddled in the darkness, a group of people sing prayers outside of one of Kyiv's churches. Volodymyr Zemhukov is walking by. The 56-year-old museum director says he remembers such a different America during the Cold War.
VOLODYMYR ZHEMCHUHOV: (Speaking Ukrainian).
BEARDSLEY: "For me, the U.S. has always been a watchdog for democracy, promoting democratic values in the world," he says.
ZHEMCHUHOV: (Speaking Ukrainian).
BEARDSLEY: "And now it has aligned with the occupiers, the dictator, the terrorists. It was a total shock for me." But he says the fact that so many historically Republican states voted Democrat gives him hope. Eleanor Beardsley, NPR News, Kyiv.
(SOUNDBITE OF LADY WRAY SONG, "HOLD ON") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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